Vacation Bible School…

I am never at ease doing something that takes me out of my box.

Yet I am sure God is prodding me to stop feeling so comfortable now that I am older, wiser and have more confidence.

Our new priest is a young man we watched grow up with our children so absolutely their peers and absolutely someone we can easily relate to.

A couple of months ago he recommended me to the Director of Children’s Ministeries for vacation bible school and I thought,

Whoah…you don’t know me at all Fr. M!

But he was only the mouthpiece for The One who knows me only too well!

I felt caught between a rock and a hard place…

Which I believe God thinks is good for me!

VBS has never held much of an appeal for me beyond the freedom, one week a year (for a year or two), to spend time at home alone from 9 am-12 noon.

For a homeschooling Mum, available to her children 24/7, this was enticing and although it was a rare occurrence I have fond memories of those hours spent at no-one’s beck and call!

I turned to my daughter Periwinkles, who would jump at any excuse to get out of the house and into something that provided her with friends and young children to care for, and told her my dilemma,

“Vacation Bible School is The Best!” she told me and refused to listen to all my lame excuses,

“The children will love you!”

So I went back to the Children’s Ministry Director and, in the absence of my gung-ho daughter to put forward in my stead, I agreed to sign on for a week in Peru.

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So, there I was in charge of the Bible Experience, a total rookie at God’s mercy.

What was there to worry about?  I knew the stories, I had a live-in trusted helper (Hubs) who had taken vows that included words like, have, hold and help.

What could possibly be so difficult?

Well for starters there was the script…I’m never good with being confined to someone else’s words,

Then there were the props…never my favourite task at the theatre working through lists of specific items,

And the dressing up…ask my children if I ever played make-believe with them or came up with fancy dress ideas?

And to round things off the thought of recounting the story four times in a row… not only to groups of mixed aged children but to my peers who were seasoned Team Leaders and could make comparisons from previous years…had me more than a little nervous.

Lots of difficulties in my mind.  Plenty of opportunity for growth in God’s.

I’d said yes and a week was only a week so I took God’s hand and together we headed into the unknown.

My room was to be the Nave, far away from the hustle and bustle of the rest of the goings on at Passport to Peru.

A quiet and sacred space where we could all meet Jesus…or so I prayed.

VBS

He leads me beside still waters…(Psalm23)

Hubs and I could not decorate until after the last service on Sunday but we had staged each story the week before and made notes on the lighting and sound and sketched out where we had placed the brightly colored blankets we’d gathered for the children to sit on.

Everything fell into place,

I found a stack of colorful pashminas at home that were perfect for draping as tunics, scarves and fisherman’s head wraps to take us all back to biblical times.

I was all ready for our opening presentation, a re-enactment of the 23rd Psalm where I led the children beside still waters and anointed their heads with oil.

After appearing as King David that first day I ditched the script.

The props we had gathered and assembled and the enthusiasm of my young listeners were more than enough to keep things moving.

We were all thoroughly engaged and the week is now a fond memory.

Will I join the team next year if asked?

It wasn’t so bad doing God’s work after all and Fr. Mullins was absolutely right to put forward my name,

“I know she homeschooled her children and did a lot of theatre so I think she’d be a perfect fit…” he’d said to the Children’s Ministry Director.  And he turned out to be right, I mean, all those years at home 24/7 with four children did equip me rather well.

The Lord is my shepherd…He leads me beside still water and guides me along right pathways for His name’s sake.” (Psalm 23)

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